DreamShark's Journal

Secrets of the iPhone - cool hidden feature (PSA)

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 18:19:33 GMT

;tldr. iPhone has a feature called Live Captions that enables conversation with the hearing-impaired (or in loud venues where everyone is hearing impaired)

I've been having confabs with my lovely elderly neighbors (i.e., older than I am) about the Parking Pad Project, which have been hindered somewhat by Bill's severe hearing loss. He doesn't like to keep asking people to repeat things, and ends up missing important details. I thought there must be a solution to this problem on my overly complicated iPhone, and there is! It was hard to find, but once I set it up it's surprisingly easy to use.

The first trick with anything Apple is figuring out their terminology. It wasn't Live Speech. It wasn't Dictation (or anything that could be found online by searching on "translate speech to text."). It's Live Captions, ideally combined with the Accessibility Shortcut.

SETUP. Once you know what it's called, it's easy to find instructions on how to enable Live Captions (Settings > Accessibility > (Hearing) Live Captions. Just toggle the slider). But then it's on ALL THE TIME, which you might not want. A better approach is to scroll down to Accessibility>Shortcut and set THAT to Live Captions. That lets you toggle the feature on or off by triple-clicking the side button.

USING IT. This was the part I couldn't find any instructions for, except vague directions to "click Microphone" (where?). I finally realized that when I enabled Live Captions a tiny little black and white icon appeared in the lower left corner of my home screen. Click on THAT and you see the Microphone option. Ohhhh. Click it, and a little window opens, declaring "Listening...." Say something and text appears in the little window. You can expand the window to full screen, which makes it a lot easier to see.

MAKING THE WINDOW GO AWAY
Just swipe right and the window folds up into the little icon again. It's still listening and transcribing, just not in your face. Click the icon and the window opens again at whatever size it was at when you closed it, so I think keeping it at full screen works the best.

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Never mind... I fixed it

Sat, 22 Oct 2022 17:52:14 GMT

I found a Force Restart sequence online that I didn't know about: quickly press VolumeUP, then VolumeDOWN, then press and hold SIDE button. That did nothing.

But ... now the phone responded to the 2-button press that is supposed to bring up the scary Power Off and Emergency SOS screen. I was intending to power it down and then back up, since Apple doesn't provide a "hard reboot" command. But instead of the Power Off screen, it flashed the Apple logo briefly and then quickly brought up my lock screen and everything was hunky-dory. I had to login with my password and re-login to Apple ID, but other than that it was all normal.

Not only that, it was more than half charged, probably because I had left it plugged in to a charging cable while I ate breakfast. There is something intermittently wrong with the mag charger on this phone, but the lightning cable always works. So I guess it was actually charging while it was comatose. All I needed was that Force Restart sequence and some persistence.

I think what happened was that the mag charger drained the battery instead of charging it. I've had that happen before, but never to the point where the phone was unresponsive. Power cycling it has fixed the problem in the past, but this time the phone was so hung that I couldn't even power cycle it.

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My iPhone is dead!!

Sat, 22 Oct 2022 17:03:27 GMT

I don't know what happened. It was just fine last night when I put it to bed on its magnetic charger. This morning it is a brick. No display, no response to power button, and not even a beep when plugged into a charging cable. My computer can't see it, and neither can its best friend, my Apple Watch. I've never seen anything like this. I've never had an iPhone just stop working before.

I don't know how to function. Without my handy ToDo list I don't know what I'm supposed to do today (except somehow get my phone fixed???). I weighed myself when I got up but have nowhere to log the results. I noticed that we were low on eggs and started to add that to my shopping list, but my shopping list is in my phone. I'm cut off from the world unless I want to use the landline (but all my contacts are in my phone!). If anyone is calling or texting me I won't know it. I can't even finish the library book I was reading, since it was an E-Book. I don't know what's happening in the world without my handy news notifications. I keep checking my pockets and wondering where my phone is.

Hell, I don't even know if the phone is still under warranty. It's a little over a year old, so probably not. But I never had problems with an iPhone before except gradual battery decline, so I don't even know how to get it fixed. The Uptown Apple Store closed down, so where do I go? Anybody out there with Apple products? Where do you get them fixed?

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Look what iPhone Photos can do!

Fri, 14 Oct 2022 18:43:48 GMT

I was investigating the new capabilities in IOS 16 (mostly ways to fiddle with the lock screen) and discovered this amazing feature. It's called something cryptic like "lift objects from background."

This is Lena at age 2 trying on a new hat in the Columbia Outlet Store in Portland.

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You maniacs! You blew it up!!

Fri, 21 Jan 2022 20:44:21 GMT

I just discovered that somewhere between my old iPhone SE and my spiffy new iPhone 12 Mini, Apple decided to introduce a new image format that nobody ever asked for called High Efficiency Image Format (which of course is abbreviated HEIC in the new file extension because WTF?). I did not realize this until I attempted to copy some pictures I took this summer onto the new Digital Picture Frame I got Richard for Christmas, and the device did not recognize this incomprehensible new format.

DAMN YOU APPLE!!!! DAMN YOU ALL TO HELL!

I figured out how to turn this helpful feature off on my iPhone camera for future pictures, but what about the thousands of pictures I've already taken? Do I have to download some dubious looking utility from some sketchy Internet site to convert these pictures?

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Loving the new phone (iPhone 12 Mini)

Sun, 08 Aug 2021 16:36:48 GMT

It was far easier to adjust to than I expected. I was apprehensive about the removal of the Home button, but the new swipe gestures are so easy to use that I really don't miss it. And Face ID works so seamlessly that I wasn't even sure it was doing anything until I tried to open my phone while it was sitting flat and facing away from me and was presented with the password entry screen. And even then, all I had to do was pick up the phone and glance at it, and it immediately opened up. SO much easier than the Home button touch-id, which took a couple of seconds and often required a few retries. I was surprised and a little hurt when I tried to open my shopping list at the grocery store and MY PHONE FAILED TO RECOGNIZE ME. Oh, right, I'm wearing a mask.

The size is only 1/4" larger than my old OG SE, but I do notice the difference. It's at just about the upper limit of the size I find comfortable in my hand and pocket, so I'm glad I ordered a couple of super skinny cases.

The only disappointment is the battery capacity. It's noticeably better than the old phone (which it damn well ought to be because the whole reason I decided to buy a new phone was because the battery was going downhill in the old one) but it declines pretty fast for a brand new battery. I haven't drained it yet, but I've gotten down below 60% with a few hours of setup activity and intermittent Candy Crush. Fortunately it has fast-charging capabilities and an uber-convenient magnetic charger (which DID NOT come with the phone, to the annoyance of pretty much everybody in the Apple universe). Unfortunately, the mag charger, while faster than the old 5W charging system, is not as fast as it ought to be. For true fast-charging you have to plug it into a cable (!!). Normally this would mean unplugging the mag charger from the expensive single-port 20W adapter (which also did not come with the phone) to plug in the cable. But it turns out that my computer docking hub has a fast-charging USB-C port right on the front. I normally put my phone on a charger while I am sitting at my computer, so that works fine.

The only downside I have found with the new phone controls is a very minor one, but a little annoying. I often get notifications across the top of the screen while I am doing something important like playing Candy Crush. I have been in the habit of glancing at them and then dismissing them by tapping the Home button. Now I have no Home button and have to wait a couple of seconds for them to fade away on their own. People with newer Home-less iPhones: is there a quick way to dismiss notifications?

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It's here!

Tue, 03 Aug 2021 20:51:08 GMT

I slipped it into the teeny tiny Torras case that arrived at the same time - a cute little clear case with dark blue trim. Looks fantastic. Then, since the phone seemed to be completely uncharged, I plopped onto the MagSafe magnetic charger, which woke it up immediately. Now I'm working through setup and data transfer, which is taking a while.

I figured I would just swap in the SIM card from my current cell phone provider, but that hit a snag. I'm with Cricket, a low-cost reseller of AT&T service, which has been simple and reliable. But... it turns out that they do not use a SIM card. The only way to swap phones (other than buying it from them) is to take your new phone to a Cricket store and let them "flash" it. Besides having absolutely no desire to go looking for a Cricket store, I am afraid that would defeat the entire purpose of buying an unlocked phone. So... bah. Maybe I'll just open a new account on Mint Wireless, which is only $15/month and has no interest in selling you a phone.

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First World Problems - my phone! My beloved phone!

Fri, 30 Jul 2021 03:13:35 GMT

Aiieee! My smartphone is wearing out. AGAIN. For the last 4 years I have been stubbornly clinging to my outdated but beloved iPhone SE, the last phone that Apple manufactured that wasn't obscenely big and clumsy. It was a refurb (so it is probably actually 5 years old) and irreplaceable because Apple discontinued them in 2018 and hasn't manufactured a decent sized pocket phone since. So I kept good old Rose Gold going with a succession of sleek little charging cases and finally a full battery replacement in 2019. But time marches on; battery #2 is starting to fade and I am down to my last working charging case.

But just in the nick of time, Apple finally gave in and is now producing a small-format iPhone again! Not a hybrid of two older models this time, but a mini version of their flagship iPhone 12! It's just a smidge larger than the first generation SE (but with a much larger screen), a BAM-SOCK-ZOWIE new camera, and a high-res OLED display. It also costs a small fortune, and has a number of dubious "improvements" that nobody asked for and I certainly don't want (like Face ID), but it seems like my best option.

So with a certain amount of trepidation I hit DONE and ordered one. And now I'm actually a little excited to get it. I'm sure it will take me a while to get used to it, but maybe the larger display size really will turn out to be adequate compensation for removal of the Home Button. Maybe. Not convinced, but willing to give it a try. At least there's still a Lightning port, so my collection of charging cables and devices will still work.

But I will need a new case, so... back to shopping. I'm reminded of an article I read when the smartphone craze was just taking off about how people were literally falling in love with their phones: wanting to be with them all the time, constantly worrying about their safety, and dressing them up in cute little outfits.

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Well, dang, I think it worked!

Fri, 05 Apr 2019 16:02:55 GMT

After months of grumbling about the increasing number of spam calls on my iPhone, I finally downloaded a free robocall blocker called Hiya. That's apparently the service that AT&T uses (and charges for). But if you download the app directly, basic blocking service is free. You still have to pay $3/month to get caller-id and some additional unnecessary services. I'm just using the free blocking service.

It's difficult to tell if it's working, especially on an iPhone, because Apple makes it as difficult as possible for 3rd-party apps to interface with their internal systems. So, according to Hiya's FAQ, there is no way for them to make a list of blocked calls to prove they are doing anything. However, it's been a week and I have only gotten 2 calls from unknown numbers (which I do not answer). Normally I get 2 or 3 a day. So... I think it's working!

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Best iPhone tip EVER

Fri, 22 Feb 2019 20:17:06 GMT

tldr; How to temporarily disable auto screen lock on your iPhone.

One of the best and worst things about iPhone's IOS is its obsessive security. While it is possible to disable auto screen lock completely (not a good idea, IMHO) there is very little middle ground. The longest settable time before the screen locks on you is 5 minutes. And there is no obvious way to temporarily disable auto lock if you are doing something like reading a recipe off the screen.

But it turns out, there IS a back-door way to do this! It's through the Accessibility feature (and boy, is that non-intuitive to configure). It has to be set up per individual app, but once it's done all you have to do is triple-click the home button to lock the screen on. It's a little harder to turn it off (due to afore-mentioned obsessive Apple security) but it's a heck of a lot faster than descending through the Settings menu to turn auto lock off and on every time you want to do this.

STEP 1) ENABLE ACCESSIBILITY AND GUIDED ACCESS

Settings->General->Accessibility->Accessibility Shortcut
toggle ON

click through and uncheck all options except Guided Access

Settings->General->Accessibility->Guided Access

toggle ON

Passcode Settings [required to get out of Guided Access mode]
set simple passcode [not the same as regular iPhone password]

Enable TouchID

STEP 2) FOR EACH APP you want to use this feature on

Open the App
Triple-click Home to trigger accessibility mode
Select Options in lower right corner
Toggle ON the Sleep/Wake Button

I'm finding this incredibly useful in the Photos app. I'm playing a puzzle game (The Witness) and occasionally I find it helpful to take a snapshot of a puzzle and refer to it when solving the next puzzle. This is a lot more useful if the picture you are referring to doesn't keep going dark. I also plan to use this for my shopping list app and of course my all-purpose journal and notes app for things like recipes.

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